Book 4: Winds from Tomorrow [Action: May 30th-June 1]

[savedtheworld]

[Action: Days 5-7]

[It's odd for Aang, waking up in House 56. What is this, some sort of bunked bed? He can't remember whatever led him to sleep there. Doesn't this violate his decision to maintain some distance from his younger friends? He slips out of the house early in the morning, or tries to. It's possible that anyone else in the household could have caught him before he was able to leave.

Aang spends the rest of the day and the next two days going back to his daily routine. He meditates in the forest near Avatar House. He goes through town, either casually strolling or zipping through on his Air Scooter, to stay social. On Day 5, he also has to set up his tent near his meditation spot again. Where could his old tent have gone?]

[ooc: Aang is aged up (kinda)-canonically to around his 40s. He also remembers Luceti in an alternate way where he was brought here at this age. The shift has also caused some memory fluctuations (who's that Yakone fellow again?), although the possibility always remains that he's actually from a somewhat alternate version of canon (aka my handwave if my few assumptions get jossed)

Replies come from beardofbalance.]

Comments

[beardofbalance]

[With a laugh.] I remember being a kid, fondly! Just not here. But consulting with the others has led me to believe that the experiment has temporarily switched me my younger self out for me.

[rockspurt]

[Just not here...]

What about back home? ...Are you this old there, too?

[Why was she the only one who seemed to remember him dying?]

[beardofbalance]

Yes, I am. It's been quite some time for me since we beat the Fire Lord.

[rockspurt]

[She lets that sink in for a moment.]

Beat the Fire Lord...right.

[beardofbalance]

Is something wrong, Toph?

[rockspurt]

[Yeah. You're dead. But here you are. Clearly not.]

Aang, what do you remember happening beneath Ba Sing Se?

[beardofbalance]

[Only the hint of warmth remains his voice, because of the time being discussed and how Toph seemed to be bothered.]

Yeah. You mean the fight with... [Flash of light] Azula? The time she got me?

[rockspurt]

[She nods slowly.]

That's the one.

[beardofbalance]

[He's starting to suspect some sort of timeline difference. The event in question raises some suspicions he doesn't want to face. So he explains slowly and calmly.]

Well... I remember that me and Katara were outnumbered by Azula, Zuko and the Dai Li. As a last resort, I... [gave her up] opened my last chakra to enter the Avatar State, because I was afraid of what could happen to Katara. But Azula took me by surprise and... she got me with lightning right after I entered it. [His face sours and he turns away for a moment at reliving the memory.]

I... I was a goner. I could feel the Avatar cycle slipping away, but... Katara brought me back. I woke up long enough to see her happy, after she was able to heal me with that spirit water. And then, after that... I didn't really wake up for weeks. [A bright smile] So long I grew hair!

[rockspurt]

[She can't make eye contact while he says this. She still thinks about that day all the time--what could have gone differently.

She chooses for focus on the least painful part of what he says.]

You? With hair? Not that I really know what you look like without it, but I bet that was weird for you.

[beardofbalance]

[Aang tries to smile, but her comment already gives a soft pain to his heart. What does this Toph remember instead?]

It was one of the weirdest times. And I had to keep it for some time since we were infiltrating the fire nation. It felt so liberating to finally shave it off before the invasion. ‹small›[That and his kiss with Katara were the only parts of that day he liked to remember. He paused before continuing in a more solemn tone.]‹/small›

But that's not what you remember, is it?

[rockspurt]

[Slowly, she shakes her head, already reliving how the scene had unfolded for her in her memory. It was hard not to, when he was so near. No matter how many times she told herself not to, it always inevitably came up anyway. That was the day everything changed.]

It isn't. For me...how I remember it, things went pretty differently. Very differently. The world isn't at peace now. We're dealing with worse things than before.

[beardofbalance]

[Hope drains from his face. He finds himself instinctively wrapping Toph in a hug.]

I'm so sorry, Toph. I must have failed you all. I was so lucky in my time that Katara was able to give me a second chance at life... but it sounds like you are truly living with the effects of my own failure.

[If Katara hadn't saved him... he was in the Avatar State. No more Avatar, no more hope.]

[rockspurt]

[She hugs him back, weakly at first, and then building. She won't cry. She'd hardened herself against that a long time ago. And she's silently grateful for that now. The last thing she wants to do is cry right here, right now.]

It wasn't your fault. [At first, she'd been angry. Placed all the blame on Katara for not doing enough.] You did everything you could. And it's not your reality anyway, okay? [She attempts a smile.] So don't worry about it.

[beardofbalance]

[He's not letting go of this hug yet.]

I can't help but worry. You must have been through so much.

[rockspurt]

[Tiredly:] Yeah.

But we're gonna make it. I know we will. The conflict can't go on forever.

[Eventually someone's gonna get tired. And it won't be her.]

[beardofbalance]

I wish there was something I can do. [He's trying to hold back tears as he imagines how bad it must be, especially when he compares it to things back home. It's almost overwhelming to imagine a world without Kya, Bumi or Tenzin. Maybe even Lin.]

What about... everyone else? Is... are they...? [He can't finish the sentence.]

[rockspurt]

...They're still around. We're still fighting. And one day we'll win. [She tries to sound as reassuring as possible.] It's just...taking longer for us.

[beardofbalance]

[He breathes a little easier, knowing that Katara and everyone still live.]

I believe in you all. I know that you can... still make a difference in the world. The world will have t find balance without the Avatar. But I couldn't think of a better group of people to make it happen. Just, still... make sure you take care of yourselves.

[He still holds onto her, afraid that she'll suddenly be yanked back to that horrible world.]

[rockspurt]

[She misses this kind of council, so she hugs him a little tighter. It's reassuring. She just wishes she could take this back to her world with her.]

...It's so good to see you again. [She chuckles.] Er--you know what I mean.

[beardofbalance]

Of course I do, Toph. Still, it would have been funny to be the one to have to remind you for a change. [He laughs.]

[rockspurt]

[She takes a step back, her tone somewhat hesitant.]

...What's your version of the world like? A lot must have changed.

[beardofbalance]

[Aang's a bit hesitant himself, unsure if his account will bring hope or just make her lament her situation more.]

Well... we won the war. Our first invasion plan failed, but we were able to defeat Ozai and Azula during Sozin's Comet. With the war over, we went our separate ways to work in helping to restore the world. There was some trouble with Zuko a year later which almost spawned a new war, but it instead resulted in a new way of looking at balance amongst the nations. It resulted in the creation of a new city called Republic City, where people from all nations could freely intermingle.

[rockspurt]

[Republic city...it sounds nice. A place where people of all nations could work together without being afraid of each other. Maybe, someday, they could have a place like that.

Someday.]

That sounds amazing. But if all the nations are there...who calls the shots?

[beardofbalance]

Well, we've set up a council with representatives from each nation so that everyone has a say in the decisions. And we have the best security we could ask for: a metalbending police force.